What can I say? I'm a self-taught, otherly-employed, emerging writer looking to make my own special little mark in Canadian TV. What are my chances? Realistically, it's not pretty -- luckily, I have a plan.

Rob Ford was a Toronto city Councellor for 10 years before running for Mayor.

10 Years.

According to him, over 10 years (and a few elections) he, at no time, read the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act - despite the fact that it was part of a package given to him, several times. Despite the fact that it was considered 'required reading'.

According to Ford: ”How I define a conflict of interest is if it’s financially beneficial to the city and financial beneficial to me personally.”

That's his answer and he's stuck to it like glue, clinging to it like the life raft that it is.

“I always thought, for 12 years, and I still believe, that a conflict is
when the city has a benefit and when I have a benefit. This is a
personal issue and had nothing to do with the city.” - Rob Ford

Because, again, being dumb isn't against the law. Being aggressively ill-informed isn't against the law.

And he's praying that you're willing to eat it up.

The big, dumb fat guy was too lazy to read.

Lap it up and let him off with a slap on the wrist.

'Cause you gotta let the punishment fit the crime, right?

And, as his followers are howling, how can he lose his job over a paltry $3000??

But this isn't about $3000.

This is about a man who in 2010 chose to solicit $3150 in donations for his own Football foundation using Council letterhead.

Leiper ordered Ford to pay back the money. He ignored the request — and the following six requests.

This February, after now-Mayor Ford couldn't provide proof of repayment
to the donors, he participated in a debate about the issue and voted
against him having a pay it back. Enter: conflict of interest
accusation."
Rob Ford ignored the order to repay the money -- essentially, his 'slap on the wrist' -- seven times.

He then CHOSE to go before council and have them vote that he didn't have to repay the money.

Mr. Ford addressed council during the debate, but it appears none of
the other politicians present objected to his participation. In a motion
by Councillor Paul Ainslie, council voted 22-12 to rescind Ms. Leiper’s
recommendation, made originally in an August, 2010, report to council.
Mr. Ford voted in favour.

His office did not respond to several requests for comment.He took part in a vote that determined whether or not he would have to repay the $3000 as ordered by the Integrity Commissioner.
Rob Ford is telling us that a 43 year old man, with 10 years on city council under his belt has not even the most basic idea of what 'conflict of interest' entails.

"Yet another observer, a woman I met in the elevator, compared the
experience to watching a caged animal being repeatedly stabbed with a
stick, unable to escape or respond or even really understand exactly
what was going on."

As a councillor, he declared a conflict prior to a 2010 council
debate over a previous integrity commissioner investigation that arose
after he accused Councillor Adam Vaughan of conflict of interest on a
radio show. (He withdrew the allegation.)

In her 2010 annual report, Ms. Leiper noted it was “the first time” a
councillor has recused themselves from such a debate. As she wrote,
“Although the state of the law in this area is not entirely clear, it
may be appropriate for Councillors who are the subject of a report on a
violation of the Code of Conduct to consider declaring an interest under
the Municipal Conflict of Interest Act, in view of the potential
sanctions that could include a suspension of remuneration (although to
date, this has never happened in Toronto).”

In my opinion, from what I've read and seen, Rob Ford is a blowhard.

He's proud, he's loud and he's arrogant.

But he's not stupid.

In fact, he's just smart enough - as distasteful as he finds it - to play the 'big dumb oaf' card. To know that if he plays his cards right, he'll get to keep his job.

At one point, trying to show that Ford’s claim to always have
believed his benefit-the-city/benefit-me understanding of the matter was
disingenuous, Ruby played a video of Ford declaring a conflict of
interest on another occasion. At that time, the matter was a report from
the Integrity Commissioner suggesting Ford be reprimanded for an
entirely different issue. There were, as laid out in the report, no
financial implications from the City at all. Ford, on the video, stood
at City Hall and said that since the report was about him, he could not
speak or vote on it, and he had to leave the chamber. He said it
himself, simply and straightforwardly.

“On that day, you understood the simple principle: if the report is
about Rob Ford, you can’t take part in the debate, yes?” Ruby asked.

“No,” Ford said.

“I heard your voice. I heard you speak the words,” Ruby said. “Did you understand the words as you were speaking?”

“No,” Ford said.

Because the other thing that he knows is that his supporters won't give a damn about what's revealed in that courtroom. They're already sold on the product.

All they see is 'brave' man being needled by the system that he's fighting to change.

He knows that all he has to do is make it out of this courtroom in one piece and he's free to spin his win however he wants.

And he will.

So he plays up the dumb, hangs his head low - tries to outrun the media from time to time (ha! The fat guy's trying to run!) and waits for the hammer to fall.

But as one fat guy who's sick and tired of the stereotype - and who's incensed that our Mayor might dare to hang his entire defense on the fact that over 10+ years the 'big, fat, lazy' man couldn't be bothered to READ the base-level rules of his job - I'm asking that you throw the book at him.

Not for the 'paltry' $3000.

But the choices he made afterward.

The choices that are a clear violation of the laws that he swore to uphold.

The laws that he brazenly flouted; that he couldn't even give a damn to read.

(Which also begs the question: what else hasn't he read)

Rob Ford, you stood before council and voted to clear yourself of a penalty rightfully leveled at you for your own, previous, poor judgement.

About Me

'404' - is LIVE!

Two years after the US Government threw 'The Switch' and plunged the country into a neo-Dark Age, Marco Temura - a recovering internet addict and cub TV reporter - will uncover the truth behind the cyber attack that brought America to its knees.